The Slovak Parliament voted on October 21 to withdraw a bill on judges from the schedule of its 42nd session. The bill would strengthen the powers of the Judicial Council and its chairman, current Supreme Court President Štefan Harabin.
A draft amendment to the Nature Protection Act was also withdrawn from the agenda. A deputy for the ruling Smer party, Peter Pelegrini, had submitted a draft according to which crude oil pipelines could be built in areas with maximum environmental protection based on a special exemption.
Parliament did not approve a proposal by opposition Christian-Democratic Movement (KDH) deputy Mária Sabolová calling for an explanation from Economy Minister Ľubomír Jahnátek as to why he signed a memorandum on cooperation in the energy sector with Austria.
Parliament did not approve a proposal by the deputy-leader of Most-Híd, Zsolt Simon, who wanted to omit from the agenda a draft bill on state administration bodies. Conservative Democrat (KDS) MP Pavol Minárik proposed a resolution by which the government of Slovakia would be compelled to reject harmonisation of mortgages within the European Union. This, as well a proposal by SDKÚ MP Jaroslav Ivančo calling for the cabinet to explain how EU funds would be drawn this year and how the amount drawn would be increased, was rejected by parliament. Vladimír Palko of the KDS wanted to ask the cabinet to report on the risks of the soon-to-come-into-force Lisbon Treaty, but he was also unsuccessful.
Compiled by Zuzana Vilikovská from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
